Despite having a bye this weekend, it was all systems go for Gold Coast Football Club this morning.

The day started early at Griffith University with players undergoing a 2km time trial under test conditions followed by a series of lively contested skills drills at the club’s Carrara headquarters. Training ended with a tackling session under the expert eye of league convert Karmichael Hunt.

Senior Coach Guy McKenna said his newest recruit’s transferable skills were a definite bonus.

“It’s great to be able to use one of his skills in that way. The same can be said for the way he lifts weights in the gym, too.”

After training McKenna spoke frankly about his ongoing expectations of Hunt.

“He cramped at three quarter time last week, and there’s every chance he’ll cramp at three quarter time every week for the rest of the season. We’re not going to condition him in season unless we break him away from playing and run him. To do that we’d have to break him away like we have with guys like Stanis Susuve and Hayden Jolly. But if you run them, they don’t play, and they don’t do much with them until the [main training session on] Wednesday, so what’s the point of that?”

After Hunt’s two-goal debut at full forward, McKenna foreshadowed a stint in the back half against Frankston at Broadbeach on Saturday week.

“He’ll tag [defensive coach] Shaun Hart this week and next week and work with the defensive guys and learn the nuances of playing down back.”

After that, McKenna says Hunt will receive a crash course in midfield play in time for GCFC’s game against Box Hill at Southport on July 3.

McKenna said he had no preconceived ideas about where Hunt might end up.

“He’ll tell us more about where he’s most comfortable after he’s played those three games.”

He remained optimistic about Hunt’s ability to improve his conditioning.

“Twenty four weeks in a preseason is enough to get him right. His conditioning program may go a little bit longer because we’ll have to strip down his body then build him back up again. You’ve got to remember that he’s been trained at an elite level for a very long time, but for a completely different game.”

Hunt was doing everything he could to get up to speed quickly, McKenna said.

“He wants to get his hands dirty and learn on the ground. We could sit him in front of hundreds of hours of tape, but what’s the point of that when he’s only taking in one percent of it.”